Luxembourg/Berlin - For projects in the energy sector there is financial support from the European Investment Bank (EIB). Today, the EIB and Deutsche Kreditbank AG (DKB) signed another global loan, for EUR 200m, at DKB’s head office in Berlin.

The credit will be made available to firms in both the private and public sector. The emphasis will be on sustainable energy supplies, but the funds will also be provided for investment in environmental protection and local public transport as well as for health and education projects.

For the EIB sustainable, competitive and secure energy supplies are a focal point of its activities. For its part, the DKB has already been financing investment by its customers in constructing and operating wind, photovoltaic and bioenergy facilities for more than 15 years. The EIB and DKB have in the past already jointly financed successful energy projects. As a matter of principle EIB loans may only be used to finance up to 50% of the capital costs of a project. As the DKB has extensive expertise and many years of experience in providing funding, a tailor-made combination of the customer’s own resources, assistance from other development institutions and DKB resources can always be employed in the overall financing package.

At the contract signing ceremony EIB Vice-President Wilhelm Molterer, whose remit includes lending in Germany, said: “The implementation of energy projects is of crucial importance for Germany. However, as well as the important large-scale projects in this sector, smaller projects should also have a chance of being carried out. With the loan signed today we are continuing the successful cooperation with our partner DKB, which is a renowned expert in financing energy projects.”

DKB Board member Rolf Mähliß commented: “We are very pleased about this new global loan, which will help with the Energiewende (energy transformation). We have been successfully cooperating with the EIB for more than 10 years and under previous agreements have already extended individual loans totalling in excess of EUR 1.3 billion. The funds available under the new global loan will enable us to offer our customers additional finance at favourable interest rates for their investments and we shall be passing on the interest rate advantage in full to our customers.

Background information:

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union and is owned by the EU Member States. Its remit is to further the long-term objectives of the EU by making long-term finance available for viable projects.

Deutsche Kreditbank AG (DKB), which has its headquarters in Berlin, uses its customer deposits mainly to extend loans to German municipalities and companies. Its strategic focus is on sectors with sustainable growth potential, such as renewable energy, healthcare, education, agriculture and housing. As well as EIB resources, for many years DKB has also been combining development loans from federal and regional development banks and passing on the funding advantage from favourable interest rates and programme-dependent repayment subsidies to customers for their investments.